Week Nine (The Final Countdown)

It's Friday evening and I'm sitting here in Freebird waiting to drive to the airport and pick up Jeanette so she can ride shotgun with me during my ride back home.

Earlier this morning at 0730 hrs, I received my final treatment. Hooray! No more balloons and hopefully no more Cancer! In four months I will get my first PSA after my treatment and I will see if the protons did their job. I am very confident they did and I will be Cancer Free.

My last treatment was not supposed to be until Monday the 25th of August but I requested to have a double treatment on Thursday so I wouldn't have to spend the weekend here. So I had one in the morning and one at night on Thursday, and the final one this morning. A few hours after my treatment I really felt tired all of the sudden and had a bit of diarrhea. I'm sure it had something to do with receiving three treatments in a 24 hour period.

This week has been filled with lots of activity as I prepared for my last day here at Loma Linda.

Tuesday Potluck

I did not go to all the Tuesday Night potlucks while I was here mainly because of the huge age difference. I just kind of felt out of place if you know what I mean. I kind of felt like I was a Rock Star on the Lawrence Whelk Show. Don't get me wrong, all the people here are great and very nice. And yes I know, one day I will be their age, just not right now.

Let me go back in time during my first week here when I was at the patient orientation. Many of the special benefits given to the patients are geared to the Senior Citizens. Special Senior discount cards, along with Seniors Only parking passes are given to all patients.

Since us young guys don't get anything special except for that special balloon everyday, I decided that I wanted to start a tradition here at Loma Linda and give something to the youngest guy in the group so he would not feel left out.

So I set out on my quest for the perfect gift and ended up at the local Babies R Us store. At first I had in mind to get something with balloons on it as a joke but I could not find anything with balloons. As I continued my search I saw a bright light coming from the very far side of the store. I followed the light and it was like I had found the Holy Grail. I had found the perfect gift! A child's training potty! This potty had a cushion seat for a "Comfy Tushy" as it said on the box. It also claimed to be the "Softest Seat In The House." This potty could also be used as a stepping stool when not in use. I just started cracking up when I read the box and thought this was the perfect gift for the Young Guy.

I then went to the bib section and picked up the perfect bib. On the front it read, "Chicks Dig Me." I was thinking this is going to be great! So I purchased both items and took them home, Oh, and I also picked up a bag of balloons while I was there. The cashier asked me if the gifts were for a Baby Shower. I smiled and told her, "Well kind of."

I then wrote a set of instructions for the "Keeper Of The Throne"

Instructions For The Keeper Of The Throne


1. You are the youngest in the group, therefore you must be the Keeper Of The Throne and carry this with you to the Wednesday night support group meetings. (You may also carry it with you to the Tuesday Pot Lucks. That’s totally up to you, but the bib could be the key to a fun filled evening with the older folks. )

2. The throne must be displayed in the center of the table you are seated at with the bib draped over the front (You may wear it if you wish). This will let everybody know that you are the youngest of the group. Not only is this a symbol of your Youth and Virility, it will also let everybody know you have the softest seat in the house, and all the chicks will dig you.

3. The throne must not be used under any circumstances! Even if you think you can’t hold it any longer during one of the Loma Linda history presentations, or Dr. Martell’s long winded speeches. (A used potty on the table while eating those special sandwiches would be really gross, unless of course you like sitting at a table by yourself, then go right ahead!)

4. You may carry the throne with you during your treatments if you wish. You can use it as a stool to help you get into your pod. However, if you do be prepared for some long stares and humiliation from the staff. (Remember to always heed the warning on top of the throne if using it as a stool. Safety 1st.)

5. The enclosed balloons are for your enjoyment and you can use them any way you wish. You can use them to make funny noises if you get bored, or as a tool to overcome your fear of balloons before you graduate. You could also use them to add to the festive atmosphere during one of the Tuesday Night Potluck Ukulele concerts. (Always remember Safety 1st when using balloons.)

6. You may add something to the throne if you wish, such as a joke, funny card, etc., just keep it humorous and in good taste and share it with the group.

7. Your other duty while you are the Keeper of the Throne is to seek out the youngest man in the group so you can pass the throne to him. Passing of the throne must be done either during the potluck or the Wednesday night support group meeting. The instructions will be read to the new Keeper of the Throne just like I did to you. This also would be a good time to share with the group a joke or what ever you added to the throne as stated in Step# 6.

8. Prior to passing the throne, please sign it with your name, age, and dates of treatment.

Please keep the tradition going and keep passing it to the youngest man in the group. Wouldn’t it be fun to see it sitting in the center of a table after returning as an Alumni two or three years from now. This is just another way to keep humor and laughter within our group. Because without the humor and comradery we experience here at Loma Linda, this would just be another scheduled cancer treatment.


Keep Smiling!

With my special gift and instructions in hand I headed out to the last Pot Luck during my stay at Loma Linda. After dinner I got up in front of the group and sought out the youngest man there. It was a close race between a 55 year old whose name I forgot, and my friend Paul from Phoenix who was 54. I presented the gifts to him and read the instructions. We all had a big laugh and it went over very well with the whole group. There's nothing like starting a new tradition!







Wednesday Night Graduation

Wednesday Night was graduation night for several of us. We all made our speeches including myself. And yes, Paul brought along the throne and placed in the center of the table for everybody to see.

It was a night filled with laughter and a few tears as the graduates made their speeches. We all were happy that we were just about done with our treatments but at the same time kind of sad that we were leaving friends that we all had made during our journey here to fight cancer. It was kind of a bittersweet feeling to the whole thing.





Final Treatment

I woke up Friday morning with a feeling of jubilance that this was going to be my last treatment. No more balloons, no more weekly doctor visits! Jeanette was flying in later that night and we would be heading home the next morning.

I went in for my final treatment and stared at the ceiling for the last time. The ceiling that had family photos and words of encouragement from current and former patients. Almost like a shrine. A few days prior I gave the HBL crew a photo of me in my Jeep, climbing a waterfall on a trail named, "Highway to Hell." I signed the photo and wrote a thanks to them for helping me over my obstacle on the "Trail of Life", and they had placed my photo on the ceiling. As the proton beam zapped me for the last time, I looked up at that photo and visualized myself climbing over the obstacle in my Jeep and everybody was cheering me on that I had made it up and over the obstacle and the end of the trail was finally in sight.

After it was all over and the final balloon extraction was completed, I thanked the crew for being so kind to me and professional at the same time. They wrote,"Done" on the inside of my pod and I had them add "Well" for "Well Done." Not for a Job Well Done but Well Done as far as being cooked. They all laughed as I walked down the hall in my hospital gown with my bare butt exposed for the last time.

Later that night I picked up Jeanette from the airport and we spent most of the night preparing Free Bird for it's journey back home. It was also a bittersweet time for Jeanette. She was happy I was finally coming home but at the same time she was going to miss the mini vacations she had while visiting me.

The Final Balloon








Saturday Morning

Saturday Morning and it was time to go home. We took our time getting up and went to the neighborhood Starbucks for coffee and breakfast. We then headed back to the park and hooked up the trailer and headed home.

I put my lynard Skynard CD in and headed east. It was a quiet ride heading out of the San Bernardino area as Jeanette fell asleep and I reminisced about the whole experience. The friends I had made, the sights I had seen, the many E-Mails and calls I received from friends and family, the tears and the laughter. The whole experience seemed like it all went by so fast and now I was going home with confidence that I would be cancer free.

By the time I was getting into the Palm Springs area the song, "Free Bird" started to play. I cranked the stereo up and woke Jeanette up as I sang along. My journey was coming to an end and I was finally "Free as a Bird!"


Final Thoughts

I've been home for two weeks now and just returned to work last week. I often think back on my Journey to being cancer free. I feel blessed that I was able to receive the proton treatment at Loma Linda for my cancer. I feel great and have full bodily functions.

I also feel blessed for having such a wonderful wife, who pushed me to get a physical exam that saved my life, and who stood by me through the whole ordeal. Like they say, Prostate Cancer is a couple's disease.

I'm also blessed for the family I have especially my Mother and Father who are both cancer survivors. They both were my inspiration throughout my battle with cancer.

Last but not least I feel blessed for all my friends and co-workers who gave me the support and frequently checked in on me either by phone or E-Mail. It really made a difference. I can't thank you all enough!

Well,I think that's about it for now!

The End!







The End!







The End!

Week Eight

As I'm writing this I'm actually in my final week here at Loma Linda. Everything is still going good and I feel great with the exception of having to get up frequently in the middle of the night to pee. Since I'm up all night I'm tired during the day of course.

Jeanette drove down again Thursday night for a three day weekend she had already coordinated through her work. She just can't get enough of me!

It really has worked out better than we expected as far as the amount of times she has been able to visit me. As usual it's always hard when she has to leave. Not much longer and I'll be home for good.

Jeanette wanted to spend the day at a beach on the last weekend before I left. I didn't want to deal with all the crowds of people that are usually on the beaches here so I decided to check out the San Onofre Beach on Camp Pendelton near Oceanside, CA.

The beach is located on the Northwest side of the base and only active duty, reserves, or retired military and their families can access it. It also has an RV Park and camping area right on the beach. It was pretty nice and we were able to enjoy a day at the beach without the huge crowd.

After spending a good amount of the day at the beach we drove around Camp Pendelton then headed to Oceanside where we walked around the Harbor area and had dinner.

San Onofre Beach on Camp Pendelton
















Some old Soviet tanks on the base














Ocenside Small Craft Harbor












Can you see the seal?

Week Six and Seven

(Please excuse any mispelled words. The spellchecker is not working and this is not very user friendly especially when you add photos and videos. It seems I've been working on this forever now and just wanted to get it out.)

Wow! Time is just flying by! I'm on my last two weeks of treatment and can't wait to get back home. A lot of people going through Proton Beam treatment here at Loma Linda call it a Radiation Vacation. There was one guy here that said he was dropped from the prayer list at his local church after they found out how much of a good time he was having. But that's the wonderful thing about this treatment. It's painless, has minimal side affects during and after treatment, and since you are here in Southern California during treatment you might as well enjoy yourself, hence, Radiation Vacation. That's all a part of the healing process.

I feel good, I'm having a great time, and I have met a lot of great people here. The whole treatment process is so positive, and everybody you come in contact with whether it's a staff member or another patient are all so positive. Being in a positive low stress atmosphere has a tremendous affect on the healing process.

My experience during this treatment makes me wonder why this option for treatment is not so publicly well known like the other options that have potentialy bad side affects. I feel sorry for the men who choose to have a prostectomy based soley upon the recommendation of their Urologists, when they could have been spared the risk of incontinence, impotency, or even death.

I challenge any Urologist with prostate cancer to research Proton Beam cancer treatment and compare it to the other options available and their side affects and then ask them what treatment option would you choose based on their research. I bet they would choose Proton Beam over sugery any day.

Jeanette and I took a tour of the internal workings of the proton beam facility the other day, and it is absolutely amazing how it works. There are so many intrical parts to the system that it is mind boggling that it even works. But it does work and has been operating and curing cancer patients since 1990. Something I did not know before the tour was that NASA uses one of the treatment rooms for research on how proton particles affect equipment and gear used by astronauts in space since solar flares contain proton particles. And my urologist said this was a gimmick. Obviously he didn't know what he was talking about.

So yeah I'm having a good time while my cancer is being annihilated by the powerful proton beam. In contrast, I could have been laying in a bed for several weeks with a cathater or colostomy bag on my side risking infection, then later having to go back and get a device inserted in my bladder to control my urine, and have no sex life during recovery and most likely none afterwards.

My activities during the past two weeks.

Week Six

Saturday the 26th of July
I went back down to San Diego and spent the whole day on the aircraft carrier USS Midway, which is a museum now. It was a self guided narrated tour of the whole ship. It was pretty spectacular. They also have aircraft displayed on the hangar and flight deck levels. The weather was great and I thoroughly enjoyed the day there.

Flight Deck











Hangar Deck













This is the War Room where the first stages of Desert Storm was orchestrated from. They even had Paul Arnett on the TV still reporting live from Baghdag. Amazing! Somebody needs to tell him that Desert Storm has been over for nearly eighteen years now.












I asked this guy if I could buy some Viagra and there was dead silence. I take it this Sailor has been on a Long Hard Cruise.













Even the Captain of the ship looked a little stoned. Geeze these guys need some Liberty!











And now a word from our Captain.


Sunday the 27th of July
My neighbors Jan and Craig came to visit me on their way to San Francisco. They treated me to dinner for my birthday and we had a great time together. It was great to see them and I really appreciated their visit. I feel so lucky that I have such great neighbors.


Jan and Craig playing remote wars














You all already know what happened on Tuesday the 29th. Yes the earth quake, something I'll never forget. Jeanette arrived later that day and spent the rest of the week with me. My neice Andrea also drove out Friday night and spent the weekend with Jeanette and I.

Thursday Jeanette and I went to Long Beach and visited the Aquarium Of The Pacific. This was a very nice aquarium! We even got to pet the sharks and sting rays. I had no idea that sharks felt like sand paper. This is definitely something to see if you're in the the area. Word of advice, go later in the afternoon when all the bus loads of kids have left.

After the aquarium we walked around the harbor and enjoyed the views of the lighthouse and the Queen Mary. We then had a late lunch and headed back to the RV. Again, the weather was perfect!

The Aquarium of the Pacific












Long Beach Harbor and The Queen Mary













Jeanette feeding the birds












They had an amazing display of various species of Jellyfish



Saturday we all went to Hollywood and spent the day there. We took one of the tours that took us through Hollywood, Beverly Hills, and Rodeo Drive. It was fun, but man what a Rat Race! People and traffic everywhere!

Jeanette and Andrea on the Tour Bus or was it a rolled van with the top cut off.












Hollywood Blvd. (Can you spot the Tin Man?)







Week Seven

I took a ride up to a small town in the mountains near Palm Springs called Idelwild. It was nice to escape the heat of the desert and take in some fresh air and smell the pines. I kind of got a bad taste of the town itself when I first arrived though. I had to pee as usual and I was trying to find a restroom to use,and encountered "Restrooms For Customers Only" signs everywhere I went. At first I respected their wish and obeyed the signs but it got to be rediculus and I had to pee really bad. I confess, Yes, I used a restroom at a place and I was not a customer. I'm sorry, unknown Idelwild business, for using your restroom, but before I could spend any time or money in your town I had to pee first. Geez!

Then I was getting hungry and wanted to have lunch before heading back down to the valley and I encountered another Idelwild challenge, Parking! Everywhere I pulled into there were the signs, "Parking for such & such establishment ONLY" I'm thinking, this town doesn't want you to pee or park but they want you to spend your money there. I finally found a parking spot, had lunch and left this frustrating town. Never going back there!

This looks like an assuming quiet, relaxing, mountain village, but lurking around every corner are those annoying signs. "Don't pee here","Don't Poop here", "Don't Park here", "No Stopping", "No Standing", "Welcome to Idelwild now Leave!"















View on the way up the mountain.














Jeanette flew in to town Friday afternoon and we visited Disneyland Saturday and went on a tour of the Proton Beam Center at Loma Linda on Sunday.

There I'm caught up again!

Look at all the Perdy Flowers in Didney Land!